While relaxing spa breaks and whirlwind city getaways have always been popular, active holidays are becoming as much a draw for travellers.
Whether it’s ice climbing in the Nordics, a long and balmy hike in the Canaries, biking through France or free diving in the Caribbean, there are countless ways to test your mettle while you’re away, making that holidayy R’n’R even more enjoyable.
“I think social media, cliche as it sounds, is a massive part of it because we can see everyone just doing incredible things all the time, 24/7”, Povey said about the boom in popularity of active holidays. “We get all these ideas from places that we would have never been able to see before social media.”
Chasing a daring photo for a dating app or an especially unique profile picture can be a motivating factor as well, she added.
On top of that, more of us are “obsessed with not wasting our free time”, Povey suggested, which leads us to seeking out more unusual activities when we have the chance. With more people enjoying a more even work-life balance thanks to remote working, fewer of us feel the need to completely switch off on holidays.
Despite thinking she “wasn’t a water person”, Povey has had incredible adventures in the sea, from doing scuba diving in Thailand, free diving in the Philippines and surf camps in Indonesia.
“I absolutely hate scuba diving for the first two days where you’re learning it in a pool, but the minute I got under the water and saw the fish, the sharks, everything, I just was like, oh, it’s a whole other world, a completely different perspective that you can’t really value until you’re under there.
“I was like, if everyone just went and did a scuba diving course and saw what was under there, no one would be polluting the ocean.”
But if the ocean seems too big a world to tackle on your own, group walking trips might be the ones for you, such as the Inca Walking Trail in Peru.
Often booked as part of a group, Povey explains that the benefits of this are help with your luggage, with sourcing permits and guides and understanding the country better. When Povey did their majestic hike to Machu Pichu, she booked with G Adventures, which she called “ethical, sustainable” and a company that gives back to the community.
For the colder months, skiing and snowboarding are eternal favourites for active holidays, but Povey also suggested snow-shoeing, which is “a lot more chill but you still get to see beautiful scenery that you wouldn’t have access to just normally on foot”.
